w," she said, "tell me all about it. What has Fraulein done?"

At first Mary was silent.

"Tell me," urged Blue Bonnet.

"Well, we were having a party in here last night--a sort of feast. It
was Peggy's birthday and her mother sent her a box. Peggy's room is so
near Fraulein's she never can have anything there, so we had it here. We
waited till all the lights were out, and it was as still as could be. We
were having a dandy time, when Peggy said she'd forgotten a box of candy
in her room and went to get it. We waited for her, and after a while
there was a knock on the door--just a little timid knock, as if Peggy
were trying to fool us. She knew a knock like that would scare us to
death, so we thought we'd fool her. I happened to have a pitcher of
water on the stand there, so we opened the door a little way--it was
pitch dark--and let her have it, full force!"

"Well?"

"Well--it wasn't Peggy--it was Fraulein! Didn't you hear her scream? It
was enough to wake the dead. Miss North came running and Miss
Martin--she's on this floor too, now, and--"

Carita's grief had suddenly turned to mirth. She rocked back and forth
in her chair shaking with laughter.

"Oh, Blue Bonnet, you couldn't have helped laughing to save you--it was
perfectly killing. Fraulein was so angry she just tore round. She
threatened to have us all expelled--disgraced--everything you could
think of! At least we took it for that--it was all in German--every
word."

"And Miss North has taken away all my privileges for two weeks--two
whole weeks! That means that I can't go to the party the girls are
getting up for the twenty-second, or anything, and I'm just not going to
stand it. I'm going home! You see if I don't--this time!"

She got up and began hauling more things from the closet.

"No, you're not," Blue Bonnet said gently, putting her arm round her.
"You're not going to do anything of the kind, you know you're not. You'd
be ashamed to. It would look as if you were afraid to face the
music--and you can--you must!"

It was Mary's turn to look amazed.

"That's not why I'm going," she said. "I'm not afraid of punishment."

"That's the way it would look."

"I don't care how it would look. I wouldn't be here to see anyway."

"Then you haven't any pride."

"I guess I have as much pride as you have, or any one else!"

"Not if you're going to run away, you haven't. Besides, I can't blame
Fraulein so very much for being angry. It isn't so fun